FEDERICO GARCÍA LORCA: BIOGRAPHY, STYLE AND WORKS - LITERATURE - 2024

Federico García Lorca (1898-1936) was a Spanish writer, poet and playwright, considered one of the most important to this day. He was part of the Generation of 27, and also enjoyed boom and popularity in 20th century Spanish literature.

Lorca's work was characterized by being original and organized, and also by the constant use of metaphors and symbols. The main themes in the writer's work were frustration, love and desire. One of his most famous works has been The House of Bernarda Alba.

Federico García Lorca. Source: Federico García Lorca, via Wikimedia Commons

García Lorca also stood out in the theater. In this literary genre she wrote, produced and participated in the assembly and staging of several theatrical pieces. Her theater was dramatic, where the visual prevailed, also the use of popular songs with origins in Andalusian culture predominated.

Biography

Birth and family

The poet was born on June 5, 1898 in Fuente Vaqueros, Granada, in a family of good economic status. His parents were Federico García Rodríguez, who was a landowner, and the teacher Vicenta Lorca Romero, who was decisive in Federico García Lorca's literary passion.

Studies and first literary steps of the poet

García Lorca's first formative years took place in his hometown, with the participation of his mother. In 1908, when he was ten years old, he went to live in Almería with his family. While in that place he began his high school studies, a year later he went to Granada and finished them there.

After obtaining a bachelor's degree, in 1914, he enrolled at the University of Granada to study law, philosophy and letters. It was at that stage of his life where he began to have more contact with the literary world. He frequently attended meetings that were held in cafes.

The time in the university was for Lorca of learning and exploration. With one of his teachers, and some classmates, he set out to visit various towns in Spain. It was those trips that activated his writing streak. In 1918 he published his first work: Impressions and landscapes, written in prose.

Between the Student Residence and growing as a writer

During the spring of 1919 some of Federico's friends went to Madrid, to the Student Residence. So the young man wanted to follow in their footsteps, and after convincing his parents, he also went to live in that institution.

The stay that García Lorca spent in the Residence had a notable influence on his development as a writer and poet. This was due to the way in which he related to intellectuals such as Luis Buñuel, Salvador Dalí or Rafael Alberti. He also managed to get rid of the provincial atmosphere.

Federico García Lorca began to carve his way to success. Between 1919 and 1921 he premiered the play The Butterfly Hex, while also developing others. He also published his work Book of Poems, and, as if that were not enough, he began his friendship with the writer Juan Ramón Jiménez, who was decisive for his poetry.

Productive time in Granada

In mid-1921 the poet returned to Granada, where he had the opportunity to meet Manuel de Falla, a notable musician and composer. Together they developed several musical projects, some on cante jondo and also representations with puppets.

Huerta de San Vicente, in Granada. García Lorca's home. It currently works as a house-museum in its name. Source: Alimanja, via Wikimedia Commons

It was in Granada where he was inspired to write Poema de cante jondo, a work that was published ten years later, in 1931. In January 1923, at his sister Isabel's party, he made an adaptation with puppets of the Andalusian folk tale, La Niña that waters the basil and the wondering prince.

The poet and Dalí

After having been in Granada, Lorca traveled to Cadaqués in 1925, to spend a season with his friend the painter Salvador Dalí. Friends supported each other. The painter encouraged the poet to paint, while he wrote: Ode to Salvador Dalí, published in 1926 in the Occidente Magazine.

Emotional downturn in Lorca's life

García Lorca had reached consecration and maturity as a poet in the period from 1924 to 1927. However, he did not feel completely full with the success of Songs and First Gypsy Romance, due to the fact that he was identified as a costumbrista and in favor of the gypsies.

In addition to the fear he felt of being pigeonholed for developing issues about gypsies, there were also the negative criticisms from his friends Buñuel and Dalí. He also had to suffer the breakdown of his love affair with the sculptor Emilio Aladrén.

Despite his "deep crisis", as he himself described it, he went ahead, he did not stop producing. In 1928 he founded the Gallo cultural magazine, but only two copies were published. In the theater, the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera prohibited him from premiering Amor don Perlimplín with Belisa in his garden.

A poet in New York and Havana

In 1929, Federico accepted an invitation from his good friend Fernando de los Ríos to go to New York. He considered that the trip would allow him to find himself, renew himself, know, learn English and forget his love. It was one of the most enriching experiences he had.

The New York culture impressed him, in the same way the economy and the humiliating treatment that they had with the black race. The lived experience and everything he observed gave him material to write Poeta en Nueva York. This work was released to the public four years after his death.

After a year in the Big Apple, in March 1930 he traveled to Havana, Cuba, interested in learning about its culture, music and folklore. During that time he dedicated himself to writing two plays; The public and So let five years pass. After three months he returned to the Spanish capital.

La Barraca, theater for the people

García Lorca was a man of liberal thought and ideas, which encouraged him to bring entertainment and knowledge to the population. The formula that he developed for this purpose was the creation of a traveling university theater group called La Barraca.

The project was carried out in 1931 when the Second Republic was born, and it was presented in various cities of the country. The most important works by prominent authors such as Miguel de Cervantes and Lope de Vega were dramatized. However, the project was marred by the Civil War.

Lorca in America

Lorca's talent led him to cross borders several times. In 1933 he received an invitation from the Argentine actress Lola Membrives to go to Buenos Aires. At that time the author's work Bodas de Sangre was successfully released, and he was able to serve as director.

The six months that the playwright spent in Argentina were one of professional growth and success, as well as financial strength. The doors of the theater were kept open, and he had the opportunity to direct, among other works: La zapatera prodigiosa, and an adaptation of Lope de Vega's La dama boba.

Back to spain

After having met intellectual personalities such as the poets Pablo Neruda and Carlos Molinari, and offering lectures and talks, Lorca returned to Spain in 1934. Already in his country he undertook the task of completing several works such as: Yerma, Doña Rosita la soltera and The House of Bernarda Alba.

Dalí and Lorca postcard dedicated to Antonio de Luna. Source: Aluna98, via Wikimedia Commons

The poet and playwright was active; in Barcelona he directed several of his works, gave lectures and recited his poems. His project La Barraca was still being presented. Later, he returned to America, specifically Uruguay, where he met several colleagues, and finished some writing.

The final days of the poet

Three days before the coup that started the Spanish Civil War in 1936, the poet moved to his home, the Huerta de San Vicente, in Granada, to be with his family. At that time, countries like Colombia and Mexico offered him asylum because they believed that he could be affected, but he did not accept.

On July 20, 1936, the city of Granada was taken by the military, and García Lorca's brother-in-law was deprived of liberty, and shot a month later. Although the writer never allied himself with any political party, he claimed to be a libertarian, a monarchist, a Catholic and a traditionalist, which brought him consequences.

The events caused him fear, so he took refuge in the house of a friend, because his brothers were members of the fascist Spanish Falange party. Despite being careful, the Civil Guard arrested him on August 16, 1936, accused him of being a spy for the Russians and of being a homosexual.

Execution of García Lorca

Olivo where García Lorca was possibly shot. Source: GrahamColm, via Wikimedia Commons

After being detained by the Civil Guard, García Lorca was taken to the town of Viznar, in Granada, where he was held together with other prisoners. The poet was shot on August 18, 1936, between Viznar and Afalcar. His remains remain buried in that place.

Style

The literary style of Federico García Lorca was characterized by the variety of tones and forms, and the use of a personal and simple language. Furthermore, his work was structured in such a way that love, desire and obsessions were almost always frequent themes.

Lorca's poetry was not aligned with any particular literary current, rather it enjoyed a variety of nuances inspired by various authors and movements. It also developed within the sad and tragic events of existence.

His poetic work was often loaded with traditional and popular elements, and at the same time he developed cultured traits. The writer also incorporated the use of symbols and metaphors into his work, to enrich it much more.

Symbols and metaphors

The use that Lorca made of symbols in his work referred to his taste for the manners, and most of the times they were related to the end of existence. The moon, the blood, the bull, the water or the horse were constant in her poetry.

As for metaphors, they were essential in Lorca's argument. In this regard, he was perhaps inspired by the poet Luís de Góngora, giving this resource a constantly bold and daring use. The idea of ​​the writer was to print greater expressiveness and sensitivity to his poetic work.

Plays

Federico García Lorca developed poetry, theater and prose. In the case of poetry, the scholars of his work consider that it can be divided into two stages: the juvenile and the plenitude, according to the different changes that took place from the experiences and learning.

-Poetry

Youth stage

It was the stage related to his years of youth, in his stay at the Student Residence. His first work, Impressions and Landscapes, although written in prose, had poetic features in its language. The influence of Juan Ramón Jiménez, Antonio Machado and Rubén Darío was also noted.

Lorca's self-portrait for Poet in New York. Source: Federico García Lorca, via Wikimedia Commons

The works written at this stage were related to sadness and lost love. It was the time of his Suites and Poems in Prose, which had content framed within abortion and its consequences, in poems such as Little Song of the Child Who Was Not Born and Degollación de los inocentes.

Stage of fullness

This stage was related to the beginning of his work, Poema de cante jondo, conceived from his fondness for the popular, and where a change is observed in the way of expressing emotions. The Gypsy Ballads and Poet in New York saw the light in this phase, and the poet entered literary maturity.

The following were the most important poetic works of Federico García Lorca:

- Book of poems (1921).

- Poem of cante jondo (1921).

- Ode to Salvador Dalí (1926).

- Gypsy ballads (1928).

- Poet in New York (1930).

- Cry for Ignacio Sánchez Mejías (1935).

- Six Galician poems (1935).

- Divan of the Tamarit (1936).

- Sonnets of dark love (1936).

Brief description of the most representative collections of poems

Cante jondo poem

This work by Lorca was framed within the Andalusian traditions, and perhaps inspired by the professional relationship he had with the musician Manuel de Falla. The book was structured in a prologue and four divisions made up of seven, eighteen and eight poems respectively.

The poet also wrote poems related to flamenco dance, among them "Two girls" and "Six caprices". Finally he added two dialogues, with characteristics of theatrical scenes, each one followed by a song. The work was published in 1931, ten years after it was written.

Gypsy romance

In this work Lorca developed themes related to gypsy culture, referring to the night, the sky and the moon. The poems are romances or lyrical compositions of eight-syllable verses, rhyming assonance in pairs, while the odd ones are free or loose.

The poems are set in the gypsy towns of Andalusia, and the author enriched them with similes, metaphors and personifications. The play was about a marginalized people, constantly persecuted by the authorities, and fighting for equality.

Poet in New York

This collection of poems was written by Lorca after his trip to New York City, and his social and cultural observations. It was a reflection of her rejection of the capitalist system, and, above all, of the way African Americans were treated.

With a metaphorical language the poet expressed the need that a part of society had to have justice, equality and freedom. In addition, he denounced dehumanization in the presence of the modern and industrial; the writer's language was based on metaphors and emotions.

Fragment of "Blind Panorama of New York"

"If it is not the birds

covered in ash, if it's not the moans that hit the wedding windows, will be the delicate creatures of the air

that flow new blood through the inextinguishable darkness… "

-Theater

Federico García Lorca has been considered one of the best playwrights of the 20th century due to the greatness of his theatrical texts. This type of works by the author were characterized by having a high poetic load, and by the frequent use of symbols, such as the rose and the blood, also raised existential issues.

The most important plays of the author were:

- The Hex of the Butterfly (1920).

- Mariana Pineda (1927).

- The prodigious shoemaker (1930).

- Retablillo de Don Cristóbal (1930).

- The public (1930).

- So five years have passed (1931).

- Love of Don Perlimplín with Belisa in his garden (1933).

- Blood Wedding (1933).

- Yerma (1934).

- Doña Rosita the single woman or The language of flowers (1935).

- The house of Bernarda Alba (1936).

- Untitled comedy (1936, unfinished).

- Sonnets of dark love (1936).

Brief description of the most representative plays

The Butterfly Hex

It was Lorca's first play, premiered on March 2, 1920 at the Eslava Theater in the capital of Spain. It did not have the expected receptivity, perhaps because it was represented by insects, and could seem childish to the audience and critics.

The play touched on themes such as failure, love and the end of life, which from the human point of view had a deep meaning. It told the story of Curianito, a male cockroach who wanted to be a poet, but is rejected by her own mother.

The little protagonist had a different vision of the world when a butterfly wounded with a wing arrived in his life, and with which he fell in love with all his soul. Unfortunately love was tainted by tragedy; both lovers passed away.

Blood Wedding

It was a play written in verses, which premiered in Madrid on March 8, 1933 at the Beatriz Theater. The story was about tragic events developed within legends, where jealousy and excessive passions lead to a fatal destiny, where only love can prevent it.

García Lorca resorted to Andalusian lands, as in many of his works, and also made use of symbols to give poetic meanings to the work. The crown, the knife, the moon and the horse are some of the elements that deepen the meaning of this work.

Yerma

In this work, Lorca developed themes related to impossible desires, hatred and punishment. It was premiered on December 29, 1934 at the Spanish Theater; the author structured it in three acts composed in turn of two paintings each.

It was the story of Yerma, a woman who wishes to be a mother, but by failing to do so fosters a feeling of hatred towards herself. The frustration she feels, and at the same time the social pressure lead her to take her husband's life, which turns the play into a tragedy.

Bernarda Alba's house

It is the best known work by García Lorca, and although it was written in 1936, it was brought to the stage in 1945 in the city of Buenos Aires. Since that time it has been performed in various countries and languages, and versions have been made for film and television.

The main theme of the work is the repression of women in rural Spain at the beginning of the 20th century, where taboos were on the surface. In the same way, the writer reflected the fanaticism of society for religion, and the fear of discovering intimacy and sexuality.

Lorca narrated the story of a sixty-year-old woman named Bernarda de Alba, who, after being widowed for the second time, decided to live in mourning for eight years. The actions walk through the house of the protagonist, and also through the depths of their hearts.

The playwright brought together a variety of themes and thoughts, among which hatred, lust, envy, the role of women in the society of that time, and freedom stood out. In addition, he enriched the work literarily with its customary symbols.

References

1. Federico García Lorca. (2019). Spain: Wikipedia. Recovered from: wikipedia.org.
2. Tamaro, E. (2004-2019). Federico García Lorca. (N / a): Biographies and Lives. Recovered from: biografiasyvidas.com.
3. Federico García Lorca. Biography. (2019). Spain: Instituto Cervantes. Recovered from: cervantes.es.
4. Biography of Federico García Lorca. (2019). Spain: Miguel de Cervantes Virtual Library. Recovered from: cervantesvitual.com.
5. Federico García Lorca. (2017). (N / a): History-Biography. Recovered from: historia-biografia.com.